


The Things They Carried

by hinalii



Category: The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types
Genre: Frodo has PTSD, Implied Relationships, M/M, Pre-Slash, Set at the end of Return of the King, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-11
Updated: 2017-01-11
Packaged: 2018-09-16 22:10:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9291641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hinalii/pseuds/hinalii
Summary: After the war Sam and Frodo live together at Bag-End but the both of them are still struggling with what happened then. Sam does his best to help.''Sam knows that Frodo isn’t okay, but he tries the best he can to make them both have the most possible normal life.''





	

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing. I only write for fun. English is not my first language so all mistakes are mine.
> 
> In the last chapter of Return of the King Sam both wants to move in at bag-end with Frodo and wants to marry Rose Cotton.  
> In the book he marries Rose and then they both go live at bag-end. Here he doesn't.

Sam walks home on a cold winter night. He’d been at the Green Dragon, drinking ale with some other guys. Merry and Pippin were there, too. It was impossible to separate those two, if one was looking for one of them he may as well look for the other.

Sam stops in front of the gate of Bag-end. After they came back he moved in with Frodo. Sam closes the door behind him with a sigh. Frodo never really came back to normal after the quest, and Sam understands that, he saw what Frodo went through, how he suffered because of the ring. How his wounds never really closed up. Sam knows that Frodo isn’t okay, but he tries the best he can to make them both have the most possible normal life.

Sam finds him sitting in his armchair, by the fireplace, staring at the flames, he’s lost in his mind, far far away from there, where Sam can’t reach him. Sam calls his name and Frodo doesn’t answer. So he approaches him and touches lightly his shoulder, whispering his name again. Frodo blinks a few times as if he’s waking up from a dream, and looks up at Sam.

‘’I’m sorry, Sam. I didn’t hear you coming in…’’ Sam smiles at him.  
‘’there’s no problem. I’m going to bed. Aren’t you going to sleep?’’  
Sam is not sure Frodo is sleeping since they are back, or at least he knows he doesn’t sleep well. He knows that because he doesn’t sleep well either. Too many memories, too many nightmares. 

‘’Yes, I’m going to bed in a moment.’’ says Frodo, smiling back at Sam.  
‘’Alright, goodnight then, mr. Frodo’’  
‘’Goodnight, Sam.’’

Sam is right: Frodo doesn’t sleep well, actually he doesn’t sleep at all.

In the night, as Sam struggles against his own dreams, he hears noises coming from the room next door, it’s Frodo’s room. Sam gets up and goes to see what’s going on, although he already figured it out. Sam hears whimpers and gasps, but as he approaches the room and opens the door, the whimpers have become screams. Frodo is still sleeping through the nightmare, Sam notices. He knows what he is looking at because that happens to him too. 

The nightmares started when they came back, with time Sam’s dreams became quieter and he thought Frodo’s own nightmares were fading as well. But he had never heard Frodo scream. So, Sam just sits in his bed beside him, and hugs him until he stops screaming and crying. After some time he manages to wake him up. Frodo looks at him with wide eyes, scared, he doesn’t recognize Sam immediately then, after a while, he hugs Sam back. 

‘’It’s all right. It’s fine. It’s over. It’s gone. I’m here, look at me, Frodo, I’m here. You’re safe.’’ Sam keeps whispering to Frodo, who only hugs Sam tighter in response. Minutes later Frodo finally stops shivering and crying but Sam doesn’t move, he keeps hugging Frodo tight, whispering:  
‘’What happened? Have you had a nightmare, mr. Frodo?’’ Frodo just nods slowly against Sam’s shoulder. Then Sam pulls away from him, looking at him in the eye,  
‘’Do you want to talk about it? They say, when you have a nightmare, if you talk about it, you’ll feel better after.’’  
A hint of fear appears in Frodo’s eyes and he shakes his head.  
‘’No, Sam, I don’t want to talk about it…’’ And then Frodo hugs Sam again.  
‘’Okay, it’s alright. You don’t have to if you don’t want. It’s fine. I’m here.’’  
‘’Sam, I can’t go back to sleep right now. Please, stay here with me?’’ Sam smiles at Frodo.  
‘’Hey, what about I make some tea? You go sit by the fireplace and wait for me.’’

Frodo nods and gets up while Sam goes to the kitchen to make tea. With two hot cups of tea, Sam enters the room to find Frodo on the big armchair by the fireplace. He’s wrapped up in a warm blanket but he’s still shivering, Sam notices. So he puts down the tea cups and sits on the armchair next to Frodo. He covers himself with the blanket and puts an arm around Frodo’s shoulders to drag him closer to him. Frodo rests his head on Sam’s shoulder, who takes one of the tea cups and hands it to Frodo.

‘’Drink some tea, mr. Frodo. You’ll feel better.’’ Frodo takes the cup from Sam’s hands and takes a sip.  
‘’Thanks, Sam. …And stop calling me mr. Frodo. I’ve told you a million times, just call me Frodo.’’  
‘’I know, I know.’’ Sam says, ‘’It’s an old habit.’’

They stay like that for a while, wrapped together in the blanket drinking tea.


End file.
